“Do your part and Allah will surely listen to you.” This is how 29-year-old Ezzat M., Egyptian, summarised his job-search story to Khaleej Times.
He went from being jobless and homeless in Sharjah Corniche to a supervisor at the rest house of a royal family member.
He was first spotted by the American-Emirati author Dedra L Stevenson who wrote an emotional post about him on social media, and then his dilemma took a big jump.
“I almost lost hope, and did not know what to do,” he said.
“I cannot fail my kids and wife. I have come here to work, not to have fun. I cannot just return home penniless.”
Ezzat, also known as Abu Ahmed, used to work as a butcher in a small village near Al Mahal Al Kubra; a big city in the Gharbia Province.
“I could not understand what this “kind saviour”, as he prefers to call Dedra, was saying. “All I knew was that she was trying to help.”
Stevenson offered Ezzat some money, but he gently refused and thanked her. “This is not what I have come here to do. I did not leave my beloved family and country to beg; I’ve come to work and earn my money with dignity.”
To Ezzat’s surprise his plight was heard by a royal family member in the emirate of Umm Al Quwain.
“I was thankfully offered a job as a foreman here at one of the rest houses of a UAQ royal.”
“I have not met him yet, but I am so happy and satisfied and cannot find enough words to thank everyone who offered help, particularly the royal family here.”
Ezzat promised to be as honest, reliable, hard-working, and diligent as he always used to be. “My role is to supervise two Indian workers because I can speak Arabic fluently and will help communication here. The three of us are here to serve the guests of the Crown Prince.”
Ezzat now has a private room, new clothes, food and a safe job. “Praise be to Allah, I feel secured, and there is nothing to worry about anymore,” he said, thanking Dedra L. Stevenson for writing about him.
“I did not expect, think, or even want her or anyone to write about me. But this is what might happen when a miraculous hand reaches out. My mobile did not stop ringing all day from people offering their help.”